The biggest new Premier League transfer rumours - with news from Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City and more.
There are always sudden changes of direction in the transfer window, with deals that seem guaranteed to go through falling apart at the last moment and players moving seemingly out of nowhere – and in our latest round-up of the biggest of today’s Premier League transfer rumours, we’re starting with a twist in the tale of Arsenal’s summer.
According to Portuguese outlet A Bola, the drawn-out negotiations over a deal for Sporting striker Viktor Gyökeres may be over – with the “collapse of the deal imminent” as Arsenal “give up” on signing the Swedish international who had been their primary target as they search for a new forward.
Arsenal had already been frustrated by Sporting’s unwillingness to budge on their asking price, which was considerably higher than both the Gunners and Gyökeres expected, and there has now been no contact between the two teams since the weekend as the Premier League runners-up contemplate “taking a definitive step back” and finding another striker instead.
Sporting supposedly want €70m up front with a further €10m in achievable add-ons (for a total value of £69m) and while Arsenal are willing to meet that total they are proposing a different structure for the deal which would see them pay €5m less up front along with less easily obtained bonus payments. Sporting, as it stands, will not move by “a single cent”.
The 3AM Verdict: We can’t help but suspect that Arsenal won’t give up too easily, and that the gap in valuation feels eminently bridgeable – but Sporting have certainly decided to be very difficult about the negotiations and it’s pretty clear that a deal won’t happen any time soon. Gyökeres has made it clear that he wants to leave, so if talks do break down, expect the player to push to get them restarted.
Chelsea & Bournemouth set for £25m deal
Over to Fabrizio Romano now, who becomes the latest journalist to report that Chelsea will soon give the “green light” to a deal which also involves Bournemouth – the sale of Serbian goalkeeper Đorđe Petrović. Petrović was hugely impressive on loan with Chelsea’s sister club RC Strasbourg last season but it seems that Enzo Maresca wasn’t interested in giving the 25-year-old a chance to take the number one jersey next season.
Bournemouth are apparently “confident” of getting a deal over the line as they work to replace another former Chelsea ‘keeper, Kepa Arrizabalaga, who has signed for Arsenal after a year on loan at Dean Court. Romano doesn’t say how much Bournemouth have bid for Petrović’s services, but reports elsewhere suggest that he will cost around £25m.
The 3AM Verdict: We’re slightly surprised that Chelsea didn’t want to give Petrović a chance this season given that there’s effectively avacancy between the sticks and his excellent displays in France, but Bournemouth seem set to be the ones who give the Serb a second bite of the Premier League cherry. The £25m price tag doesn’t feel too unrealistic, but is yet to be confirmed.
Crystal Palace & Nottingham Forest set for £40m transfer battle
Finally, news from two teams who will hope to compete for European spots this year – different media outlets report that both Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest are ready to make a move for Manchester City forward James McAtee, who is set to leave the Etihad this summer after playing a key role in England Under-21’s victorious European Championship campaign.
The Daily Mail report that Forest, whose interest is long-standing, believe that City’s valuation of £40m can be bartered down to a rather more manageable £25m, although several teams in Italy and Germany are also said to be interested. Caught Offside, meanwhile, claim that Palace “have joined the race” for McAtee and suggest that the 22-year-old wants to leave the club – they also mention Everton as potential suitors. No word on a formal offer from any of the interested parties as yet.
The 3AM Verdict: Now that McAtee is back from Slovakia, we can expect the battle to start brewing. Palace and Everton are new names to us but Forest have been keen for a long time and we’re confident that they’ll make a bid. Several teams will probably lodge offers, and it’s too early to say where McAtee will go.
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